In September, Westinghouse and Enusa announced their intention to collaborate on VVER-440 fuel fabrication with the aim of delivering a Western alternative to Russian fuel in the European market VVER-440s currently use fuel from Rosatom’s TVEL.

“The Russian nuclear industry stands out as a rare – indeed unique – case of a high-technology sector that has not only recovered from the end of the Soviet era and the chaos that followed, but has developed an effective export strategy that has allowed it to prosper today as never before.”

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) also decided to invest $30bn in South Korea's industries, South Korea's presidential office said.

The aim of the energy strategy is for Bulgaria "to remain a leader in the production and export of electricity in the region".

The researchers say that, regardless of the purpose and scenario of the mission, a reliable source of energy is needed for successful exploration of the Moon.

As the world pushes towards net-zero emissions targets, and away from the war-influenced roller coaster of fossil fuel prices, many countries – including Canada – are putting the nuclear option back on the table.

The awards announced today are provided through the DOE Office of Science’s Innovation Network for Fusion Energy (INFUSE) program, which was established in 2019 to accelerate fusion energy development through public-private research partnerships.

"Investment in new nuclear is a no-regrets option given expected increase in power demand and retirement of existing plants," the report said.

The two icebreakers, with a power capacity of 60 MWe each, are scheduled to be completed in 2028 and 2030.

In July, the government laid out a new energy policy which aims to maintain nuclear's share of the country's energy mix at a minimum of 30% by 2030.

However, in March last year the Belgian government decided to start talks with Electrabel - the Belgian subsidiary of Engie - with a view to extending the operation of Doel 4 and Tihange 3, allowing for the retention of 2 GWe of nuclear generation capacity.

DOE noted the significance of the Government of Japan’s announcement of its “Draft Future Nuclear Energy Direction and Action Guidelines” in December 2022.

The discussion covered issues related to further expanding economic ties, primarily in energy, with the priority being strategically significant projects like the creation of a regional natural gas hub in Turkiye and the construction of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant.

Seaborg's design is for modular CMSR power barges that can produce between 200 MW and 800 MW of electricity, with an operational life of 24 years.

Under the new policy - which describes nuclear power as "a power source that contributes to energy security and has a high decarbonisation effect" - Japan will maximise the use of existing reactors by restarting as many of them as possible and prolonging the operating life of aging ones beyond the current 60-year limit.